S.C. lawmakers hopeful highway bill will pass

WASHINGTON — The federal highway bill, that once-or-twice-a-decade opportunity to bring road and bridge money home to the states, passed the U.S. House last month and is nearly ready for a Senate vote.

This year’s $284 billion bill has the White House threatening a veto if the Senate adds to that cost. The last highway bill, which cost $218 billion, expired in 2003. Unable to compromise, Congress has since extended that bill.

This year, “the bill will pass and I believe our projects will stay in,” said U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., noting how long it’s been since the last highway bill and President Bush’s desire for a new one.

The following Midlands projects were put into the House version of the bill by each of the two men who represent the Columbia region in the House — Wilson and Jim Clyburn, D-S.C. Whether these projects remain in the Senate version of the bill is dependent in part on the efforts of U.S. Sens. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

2ND CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

Represented by Wilson, the district includes parts of Columbia, all of Lexington County and runs south to Hilton Head.

• I-26/U.S. 1 Airport Connector — $2 million to continue design, property acquisition and construction of a multilane roadway between I-26 and U.S. 1 in Lexington County

• Lexington Connector — $2 million to widen U.S. 1 and S.C. 6 and make improvements to U.S. 1 and U.S. 378

• Hard Scrabble Road — $2 million to widen eight miles of Hard Scrabble Road from Farrow Road to Langford Road

6TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

Represented by Clyburn, the district includes parts of Columbia and runs east to Marion County and south to Colleton County.

• Briggs-DeLaine-Pearson Connector — $25 million for a bridge that would connect S.C. 33 in Calhoun County to S.C. 120 in Clarendon County

• Shop Road — $1 million for the first phase of a project to extend Shop Road and widen Airbase Road, Pineview Drive and Leesburg Road

• Highway 21 — $1 million for a rail crossing safety project in Orangeburg County

LEGISLATION WATCH

• Actual title: “To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for the public disclosure of prices for hospital and ambulatory surgical center procedures and drugs”

• More fitting title: “I’m Not Gonna Pay A Lot For This Bypass! Act”

• Intent: “You can’t ‘shop’ when you’re having a heart attack, but you can shop for elective procedures,” Inglis said. “Having pricing information on the Web will cause some price competition and that’s good for consumers.”

• Co-sponsored by: U.S Rep. Bob Inglis, R-S.C.

• Why do it? Consumers could shop around to reduce medical costs.

• Will it pass? So far, the bill has garnered the support of three House members and doesn’t seem to have much momentum.

VERBATIM

“His critics are inspired by bitterness, hatred, and partisanship. Their smears will fail, just as they failed against Vice President Cheney, Dr. Rice, Secretary Rumsfeld and former Attorney General Ashcroft.”

— U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., defending House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, who has been accused of ethics violations

Reach Markoe at (202) 383-6023 or lmarkoe@krwashington.com